


A Very Merry Wraithmas

by PuddleJ



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:42:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21923098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuddleJ/pseuds/PuddleJ
Summary: John never imagined he'd spend Christmas like this.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 36
Collections: Stargate Atlantis Secret Santa 2019





	A Very Merry Wraithmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dragonflower1](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonflower1/gifts).



John Sheppard strode along the path, a rare lightness lifting his steps. A casual observer might even describe it as a skip, but those that knew him would never dream of saying John Sheppard skipped. At least, not to his face.

Shots burst across the path, John hit the deck instantly, scrambling for cover in the undergrowth. More shots hit millimetres from his feet as he rolled behind a convenient rock, M9 already aimed in the general direction of his supposed attackers.

As he watched, a dozen Wraith marched into view, making no attempt to hide themselves. They spread out, obviously searching for him. If he could just crawl undetected as far as the Puddlejumper parked in a nearby clearing, then he’d be home and dry, but the only cover was this dense undergrowth, which would give him away instantly.

At that moment, another Wraith strode around the corner, stunner in hand and started dropping the others before they had a chance to react.

John didn’t stop to question, using the distraction to crawl away in the direction of the jumper. He was dismayed to see the scoring around both drive pods, but a faint hope settled as he tumbled into the pilot’s seat and thought the ship ‘on’. Hope faded as the only reaction was a strained electronic sound as the drive pods failed to engage and the rear hatch ground to a halt only a third closed.

He sank back against the seat, scowling in frustration as he weighed his options. Stay in the jumper and hope the Wraith gave up trying to find him, then make a run for the gate on foot. But they’d more than likely find him as the jumper wasn’t cloaked. Okay then, he thought. Use the jumper as cover, and try and pick them off one by one. There should be less of them now anyway, thanks to the mystery benefactor. Then again, that posed the question of what a solitary Wraith was doing picking off a patrol of his own kind. More than likely from a rival faction. There was always a chance he’d come for John once he was done with target practice.

“Dammit, John, think!” he growled to himself.

First things first, attempt to get a message back to Atlantis, assuming the DHD and radio were still working. Quickly, he tapped out the symbols and transmitted his IDC.

A burst of static and garbled speech echoed around the cabin.

“Atlantis, say again?”

Another burst of static.

“I don’t know if you can hear me, but this is Sheppard, I’m stranded on P3Z-722 and surrounded by Wraith. Looks like there might be more than one faction here and I don’t wanna get caught in the middle. If you guys could come get me, I’d be really grateful.”

 _“…ard, is that you?...Hear you, the signal…terrible. Say again_?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m stranded on P3Z-722 and there are Wraith here. I need a lift home,”

“ _Sorry, Colonel. We’ve got a little situation here, don’t know how long it’ll be, but we’ll get to you soon as possible_ ,”

Another squeal of feedback and static, and the connection cut out. He tried dialling again, but the DHD wouldn’t connect and he gave up.

So, he’d have to wait it out until the cavalry arrived or the Wraith went home. He couldn’t stay here – too obvious a target and not secure enough. No, he’d have to get to a more defensible position.

He stood up and went to the back of the jumper, pulling out storage boxes and gathering ration packs, a couple of canteens of water and what little ammunition there was. No sense leaving that for the Wraith to find, the decision was bound to come back and bite him on the ass later. He surveyed his meagre supplies: sure he could take more, but he had no idea how far he’d have to travel to find shelter and speed was of the essence before the Wraith returned.

Hefting the black backpack over his shoulders, he habitually checked the magazine of his sidearm, slipped it back into the holster, then carefully peered out of the jammed hatch.

The coast appeared clear, so he quietly slipped out of the disabled jumper, using the ship as cover as he kept glancing all around for any signs of an ambush. There was no way to tell which direction the patrol had taken, or whether they had all been felled by that lone gunman, but John hoped he was travelling away from them.

He had been walking for an hour or so and the trees had thinned considerably, the landscape fading from woodland to scrub and rocky outcrops. He was beginning to hope that he might find some kind of cave to shelter in. He traipsed on, but a sense of being watched started to prickle the back of his neck, and his hand strayed unconsciously towards his holster.

“John Sheppard!”

John whirled round, sidearm in hand, ready to fire at the Wraith that seemed to have appeared from nowhere.

“Do not shoot!”

Huh, wraith didn’t usually ask for mercy, he thought. What was going on here?

He stared closer at the creature. Tall, of course, long wild white hair and a starburst tattoo above his left eye.

“Todd?” he asked, almost to himself. “What the hell?”

“We have no time for talking, John Sheppard. Follow me.” The one he had dubbed Todd, in memory of that guy from college, strode off at an angle.

“Now wait just a minute…”

Todd stopped and turned back. “If you wish to be captured, by all means stay here. It makes little difference to me.”

With an internal growl of frustration, John found himself following as Todd forged his way through the rocks. John considered himself physically fit, as all the military personnel had to be, but he found it hard to keep up with Todd’s relentless pace.

“Where are we going?” he grunted.

“A place of safety.”

Todd didn’t speak again until the ground began to rise and an escarpment of brownish rocks and scree appeared in the distance. He waved a hand in the direction of the rocks. “I have found refuge among these rocks for some time.”

John was about to ask how long ‘some time’ was, but Todd had marched off again and dusk was beginning to close in. Strangely, he found he’d rather be in the company of a wraith than alone in the dark on an unfamiliar planet. Better the devil you knew, he thought to himself, supressing an ironic smirk.

By the time they reached the escarpment, it was almost completely dark and he knew he would have struggled to find an overhang out of the wind, let alone an actual cave.

“Here,” Todd pointed to what appeared to be simply scarred sandstone, undoubtedly hewn into twisted spirals by the biting wind that had sprung up with nightfall. John looked at him, eyes narrowed, suspecting a trick.

“There is no trickery. The cave is here if you look. It is all a matter of perception.” Todd’s eyes almost seemed to glow, and John wondered if wraith could see in the dark. For a moment, he found himself drawn into the green, but he tore his gaze away, searching instead for the cave entrance.

And now he looked again, there seemed to be a small entrance dead ahead, as obvious as any man-made door back home. John glanced over his shoulder at Todd, but the wraith’s expression was unreadable in the gloom.

“After you,” John said.

Todd eyed him, but crouched and ducked under the low shelf, disappearing from view.

John paused, asking himself if he was really about to spend the night in a cave with a wraith. A gust of wind howled around his ears, bringing a splatter of raindrops and his decision was made.

It would have been dark inside, except for an eerie green glow from an egg-shaped device balanced on a convenient ledge in the cave wall. The space was cosy, but there was enough room that neither occupant should be in the way of the other.

“Nice place you got here. Very bijou,” John joked, attempting to lighten the mood.

Todd merely grunted. Huh, clearly he wasn’t in the mood for small talk, John thought.

“So I’ll just grab this bunk, then,” John continued, gesturing to the opposite side of the cave.

Todd gave no acknowledgement this time, so John turned away and yanked a sleeping bag out of the backpack, unrolling it onto the floor. He shivered as he did so – the night had turned chilly and there was no possibility of setting a fire in this confined space. He toed off his boots and slipped into the sleeping bag for warmth.

Now he began to warm up, fatigue swiftly rolled over him and he found he couldn’t fight it any longer. Falling asleep next to a wraith was possibly going to be the biggest and/or last mistake of his life, but he couldn’t will himself to care.

John woke, momentarily disorientated by the green light, but he quickly remembered where he was and his eyes flew around, expecting to see Todd looming over him, ready to strike. He was mildly disappointed when he realised the cave was empty. Which was weird, considering the wraith wouldn’t be his first choice as a camping buddy.

He sat up, becoming aware of a muffled rumble from somewhere outside. He was about to crawl out of the sleeping bag, but Todd appeared in the entrance, making John jump a little. He cursed inwardly at how quiet they could be.

“I can sense no Wraith nearby, but it would be foolish to attempt to reach the ring on foot. There is a severe storm outside,” Todd said.

“So we’ll have to wait it out,” John stated, wriggling out of the sleeping bag.

“Indeed.”

John’s stomach growled, causing Todd to glance sharply at him. “Do you require food?” he enquired.

“Yeah. Luckily I brought a few of these with me,” John grinned, waving an MRE from his backpack. “Want to join me? There’s plenty to go around.”

“I do not need sustenance at this time,” Todd replied.

John sat down and began to tuck into the first package from the MRE. He hadn’t looked at the label, but as he took the first bite, he realised it was ‘Christmas Dinner’ flavour, complete with cranberry sauce and roast potatoes. In all the drama, he’d forgotten today was Christmas Day! He’d be spending Christmas with a Wraith. He couldn’t supress the chuckle that rose in his chest and he burst out laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation.

Todd jumped up in alarm, staring at him, which only made John laugh harder, dropping the MRE and helplessly doubling over.

“What is wrong?” Todd demanded.

John shook his head, unable to reply for a minute. Gasping, he tried to pull himself together.

“Today is Christmas,” he eventually managed to choke out.

Todd gave him a long, assessing gaze, before seating himself opposite John. Apparently satisfied that John did not present an immediate danger, he asked “What is “Christmas”?”

John finally gained control of his laughter, wondering how in the hell to explain Christmas to a ten thousand year old being that only believed in the absolute superiority of their own species.

“Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. He was a kind of religious leader who was supposed to have been born in a stable about two thousand years ago because there was no room at the inn.”

“And all humans believe this?”

“Some do, but there’s loads of other celebrations, Hanukah, Yule, Kwanza…”

“Ah, rituals. Our worshippers have many of these. How do you celebrate this ‘Christmas’?”

“Well, some people go to church, but a lot of people just shop, eat and get drunk. Course every family does their own things, but it’s supposed to be about being with family. Gets kinda lonely for folks without family.”

Todd seemed to be interested despite himself.

“And what do you do, John Sheppard?”

John felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise as Todd’s gaze bored into his.

“Uh, well, you know, I get drunk and eat turkey dinners, pretty much.” John held up the MRE bag.

Todd appeared thoughtful. “And does this taste good?”

John laughed again. “THIS doesn’t, but the cooks in the mess hall managed a pretty decent spread last year.”

“I wish to try this,” Todd stated, pointing at the MRE.

Surprised, John reached into the backpack and pulled out another meal. He handed it over and Todd ripped open the top, intrigued by the contents. He began to eat, his face giving nothing away.

“What do you think?” John asked, a while later.

“It is…interesting,” Todd replied.

“So…you like it?”

“I will need more to form a considered opinion.”

John smirked as he handed over another MRE. “You do like it then.”

Todd gave him another measured look, then turned his attention to the food. John was pretty sure he’d seen a hint of amusement in Todd’s expression. It seemed there was much more to this Wraith than met the eye.

“Merry Christmas, Todd,” he whispered softly.


End file.
